A survey of the ANC |
During the course of 2008, SWOP formulated a project proposal entitled Towards an Understanding of the ‘Zuma Tsunami’: COSATU and the ANC, 2002 -2009. This was originally conceived as a linked, parallel study to the 2008-09 round of the Cosatu Worker Survey, undertaking a survey of the membership of the African National Congress. The project was designed to allow SWOP to elicit a deeper understanding of the relationship between COSATU, the ANC and the Tripartite Alliance, notably as it was expressed by the election of Jacob Zuma to the presidency of the ANC at the latter’s 52nd National Conference in Polokwane in December 2007. The project was designed not only to outline the dynamics of the dramatic events within the ruling party, but to help us to pose such questions as: What is the political role of the organized working class in contemporary South Africa? What is the particular weight of the trade union movement within the ruling party? And, what is the potential for COSATU to influence government policy and to redirect it towards more socially equitable outcomes whilst encouraging investment and growth? Initially, the project was conceived as being carried out during the lead up to the forthcoming 2009 general election. However, wider developments have rendered the original conception methodologically and politically problematic. Accordingly the project is now being redesigned around different methodologies to provide for a deeper understanding of the membership and organizational functioning of the ANC, and the role of the working class within it. The project is funded by the Ford Foundation. The project is led by Professor Roger Southall.